Buffers coming to water near you

BuckSutherland

5 year old buck +
I was browsing through the text of the bill passed out of the MN special session last night. I think I got most of the talking points correct, but DO NOT rely on my word 100%.

1. For lakes, rivers, swamps, natural streams a buffer of at least 30-50 ft will need to be installed in perennial rooted vegetation by Nov 1, 2017 with a minimum of 50 ft average.

2. For all man made drainage ditches a buffer of at least 16.5ft will need to be installed in perennial rooted vegetation by Nov 1, 2018.

3. Looks like Soil, Water and Conservation is gonna be in charge of administering this.

4. This land can be enrolled in CRP program

5. Water access, beaches, landing, and all kinds of other stuff are exempt (140.6)


You can read through on your own. Find it starting on page 138. 138.7 to be exact:

https://www.revisor.mn.gov/bills/te...session_year=2015&session_number=1&format=pdf


Congrats on your big land grab governor mushmouth, and way to exempt golf courses and lake homes.
 
So, will a manmade waterhole need a 50 foot exemption for our foodplots?

How about a roadway that runs alongside a drainage ditch? Need a buffer there? Can't use the ditch bank as the roadway?
 
Dayton signs bill to mandate buffers to improve water quality and habitat
But critics say law doesn’t do enough for clean water.
By Doug Smith Star Tribune
June 13, 2015 — 11:37pm



Doug Smith, Photo courtsey Lincoln County Soil and Water Conservation District
The Lincoln County Soil and Water Conservation District planted a buffer on private land last week along the Yellow Medicine River. The landowner has enrolled the land in the federal Conservation Reserve Program. Photo courtsey Lincoln County Soil and Water Conservation District.

Most Minnesota rivers, streams and ditches will get grass buffers to reduce soil erosion, improve water quality and create wildlife habitat under the compromise passed Saturday by the Legislature and signed into law by Gov. Mark Dayton.

But the new policy — hailed by Dayton and others as landmark legislation — is weaker than the original proposal offered in January by the governor. Wildlife, in particular, might benefit less because of the changes.

But Dayton estimated 110,000 acres will be put into buffer strips, and he noted that just 20 percent of public ditches currently are required to have 16.5-foot buffers. “This will make it 100 percent,” he said.

Current law requires buffers on public waterways, but enforcement by counties has been inconsistent.

The governor said the buffer bill will be one of his most important legacies.

“I think we’ll see in the next couple of years a very significant expansion in the number and quality of buffers to make our water cleaner and increase wildlife habitat,” he said. “Given the predictions that were made at the beginning of the session, that nothing would happen, I think this is a very significant accomplishment.”

Still, some see it as an opportunity missed.

“It’s a moderate step toward improved protection of our waterways,” said Jill Bathke, a natural resource scientist with the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy. “It definitely should have gone a lot further.”

Said Rep. Rick Hansen, DFL-South St. Paul, who supported Dayton’s original proposal: “It’s probably the best we could get. I wish it were stronger. But this will be a nation-leading event. It’s a big deal.”

Steve Morse, executive director of the Minnesota Environmental Partnership, said it will have a modest impact. “No one should be under the impression that this buffer law will clean up our waters,” he said. “The waters of southwestern Minnesota will remain unswimmable and undrinkable.”

Under the new law:

• The Department of Natural Resources will map all public waters and ditches that will be subject to buffers by next July, and will be given $650,000 from the Clean Water Fund to do so.

• Fifty-foot buffers must be installed on public waters by November 2017 and 16½-foot buffers on public ditches by November 2018. Dayton had wanted the buffers by 2016.

• Many small streams, headwaters and ditches aren’t “public.” Dayton’s original proposal would have required that some of them, too, have 50-foot buffers. Now it will be up to the state’s 90 county soil and water conservation districts to identify those that need buffers.

• Over the first two years, the districts will share $22 million from the Legacy Amendment’s Clean Water Fund for technical assistance costs. That’s an average of about $242,000 for each district. After the first two years, funding comes from the state’s general fund. (Hansen believes tapping the Clean Water Fund for the soil and water conservation districts is unconstitutional.)

• The state Board of Water and Soil Resources (BWSR) can withhold funds to soil and water conservation districts that fail to implement the law. The agency has been allocated $5 million from the Clean Water Fund to help with implementation.

• Counties, watershed districts or BWSR will enforce the law, and fines up to $500 can be issued; multiple fines could be issued. “You can’t just pay to not have a buffer,” said John Jaschke, BWSR executive director. (Under Dayton’s original proposal, the DNR would have enforced the law.)

• No new money is in the bill to pay landowners to take cropland out of production and plant buffers, but there is $33 million from the Clean Water Fund and the Outdoor Heritage Fund available for easements and other financial assistance to help landowners meet or exceed buffer requirements. The federal Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) and state Reinvest in Minnesota (RIM) program can provide annual or easement payments.

The Minnesota Farmers Union was among agriculture groups that opposed Dayton’s original proposal and lobbied for changes that are reflected in the final version.

“Most of our members can live with it, but some are not too happy,” said Thom Petersen, government relations director for the group, which represents 14,000 farm families.

Width of required buffer strips is one of the biggest changes from Dayton’s original proposal. Under the compromise, buffers on public waterways must average 50 feet, but public ditches will need only 16½-foot buffers, as Dayton noted. The difference going forward will be that rather than 20 percent of public ditches being buffered, now 100 percent should be.

“Most studies show the best water and habitat benefits start when a buffer is around 50 feet,” Bathke said.

Joe Duggan, a Pheasants Forever vice president, said some ditch buffers could end up being wider. Some farmers likely will connect with the federal CRP program, which pays annually for minimum 30-foot buffers.

“My guess is, in many cases when people do the math and see what CRP pays, we’ll get 30-foot buffers,” Duggan said. “I’m pretty confident that we’ll eventually have an extensive system of buffers that aren’t in place today, and they’ll provide nesting cover for pheasants, ducks and other wildlife. It’s not all we need to address water or wildlife issues, but it will be a major improvement.”

Said Dayton: “We put the deterioration of Minnesota’s water quality and wildlife habitat on the front burner. It directs attention to the fact that we need to be doing a lot more.

“It’s a very important first step, but it’s not the last step.”



Twitter: @dougsmithstrib
 
And how would you feel if they took some of your land and jammed this down your throat, gave you zero tax relief, and you just paid $10,000/ acre to buy the land? Most of the drainage ditches that are dug have the dirt mounded up and for water to get over them and into the ditch would take a ten inch rain.

And once again all the cities, roads, bridges, and "progress" of mankind gets exempted. Never mind the millions upon millions of acres that have been lost to development the last 2-3 decades. We arent farming any more ground than 50 years ago. We are just farming different ground cause the progress is making us. I know 1000s of acres of prime farmland with housing developments and shopping malls sitting on them that weren't there a couple years ago.
 
There is ZERO compensation in the bill. and ZERO tax relief. Nobody wants to go into RIM or CREP. And all they really did is pass the buck onto the federal government.

And I think that they could have done farmers a favor and made all of these new buffers no hunting zones. Many of them are very worried about liability issues. I can tell you without a doubt this is going to cause some really bad relations between farmers and hunters. I can also guarantee that anyone with a little bit of woods left on their property is gonna mow it to the ground to get their land back. The deer will continue to lose in southern MN.


110,000 acres at roughly 5-8k an acre is somewhere over 550 million dollar land grab.
 
Your kidding right??

You know how weak the trespass laws are, all the horror stories I hear from other farmers about guys waiting on the gravel road while the combine flushes the last of the pheasants in a field. I have it happen to me every year when i am combining by the state trail. Guys sitting there blasting into the field at the birds flying around. Also love it when the slugs start flying. You ever have anyone shooting into your area while your trying to work?

Poachers and trespassers have zero regard for a little sign posted on the road, and even if they get caught the law does nothing to them.
 
This is a good thing. Farm country really got a lot of pressure to produce, after the ethanol mandates were put in place.
 
I had a wild thought. What is going to happen to wooded hillsides that butt up to waterways? I'm talking about the ones where the canopy is closed and the forest floor keeps running into the water with those phosphorus rich tree leaves? I wonder if this will mandate clearing of the trees and installation of grasses?
 
Trespass laws are weak in MN for everybody, they're "tighter" on ag lands than on rec lands (which pi$$es me off to be honest). Anyone shooting into my area while I'm trying to work will get the sheriff called. Doesn't matter if I'm a farmer or any other occupation. That's an issue completely different than the buffer law.

As to the guys sitting on the road for birds...I was surprised to learn that road hunting birds is legal here (think its only on dirt roads?...which also pi$$es me off...I pay taxes to the center of my dirt road). That's a definite "no no" in WI
I believe there is a difference on which road right of ways can be hunted. Gravel township roads can be used for bird hunting. Like you, I own land to the middle of the road. I believe this gives farmers the right to farm most if not all of that land.

I somewhat feel farmers got the worst of the deal on a publicity basis.Many lake shore home owners and even users of public roads along waterways need to realize that they are also a big share of the problem.
 
Let us look at an example of a roadway adjoining a ditch that adjoins a farmers field.

Will the farmer need a wider buffer than is needed, if any, along the roadway?
 
I also feel that this buffer law is more of a feel good deal than really accomplishing much. Tax payers money will be spent, more government workers will be needed, and non-farmers will feel great to see the green strips.

A few more tile lines will be installed under the buffers and the end result will be very small for the environment.
 
I'm sure there are going to be lots of "what ifs" with this law, but the bottom line is that it is better for our water resources and may help with habitat for critters. Is it the "best" solution for everyone involved? No. Since we already had buffer laws that weren't being enforced, will this new law make one iota of difference? Who knows...if its enforced, probably...if its not, then its just some more feel good legislation.

Keep in mind, this isn't a uniform 50' on all waterways...there are plenty of exceptions already built in. Also, keep in mind that the predicted 110K acres isn't just going to sit there and be habitat for critters. It can still be harvested for hay or grazed (which seems counterproductive to me)
If grazed cattle will deposit manure, and where will it go but towards the water.

I like the idea of a 50 foot average. Mu neighbor has a location where the river is changing course and getting closer to his irrigation rig. The average may allow him to keep using his fairly new rig.
 
There needs to be a moratorium on tiling IMHO


Any time you want to come out I will show you the benefits of tile and what a lack of tile has done to some of the ground I farm, especially in a shit year like 4 of the last 5. You have zero understanding of how it works to make a blanket statement like that is something that really pisses us farmers off. I am sick of watching my topsoil leave the field as overland runoff on 3-5" rains on soil with 1-2% slope cause I cant get the LLs to put in any more tile.
 
There needs to be a moratorium on tiling IMHO
I have mixed feelings on the buffer strip idea and can see both sides of the issue. My honest opinion is that the clean water idea in southern Minnesota is really hopeless, just like the warming climate. Climate is changing and there isnot much we can do about it but adapt to it.

We had a government program for buffer strips to clean up water and prevent flooding in our watershed. Farmers were paid to plant trees and tke land otuof production. The deer are using these strips a bit.

However,on one forty acre parcel, money was paid for a buffer strip. but a ditch was deepened to empty into the same stream.

Another case, buffer strips were paid for by the government and then tile lines had to be installed to get the water off of the land. The tile lines run through the buffer strips.

I do see the benefits to tiling. Tremendous boosts in yields and the farmer is increasing his efficiency, just like any other successful business man does. The environment suffers, just like what any other businessman also tends to do when he paves more ground, adds onto his shop, drives more miles in a vehicle...

Curmudgeon blood is stirring again!
 
Any time you want to come out I will show you the benefits of tile and what a lack of tile has done to some of the ground I farm, especially in a shit year like 4 of the last 5. You have zero understanding of how it works to make a blanket statement like that is something that really pisses us farmers off. I am sick of watching my topsoil leave the field as overland runoff on 3-5" rains on soil with 1-2% slope cause I cant get the LLs to put in any more tile.

I see some truth to that, Buck. To a point, a farmer has a right to make his business successful.
 
What's crazy about this whole thing is that it all started at the pheasant summit. It quickly devolved into a land rights battle between farmers and the pheasant/gov't coalition. The gigantic missed opportunity here is they completely ignored "quality of habitat" on existing WMAs. I drive all over SW MN and see lots of WMAs where signs were put up and everyone walked away patting themselves on the back. Now it's all low quality grass (no legumes) that lays over in the winter and there isn't much diversity to provide cover in winter or good bugging ground in the spring. A lot of good could have been done by planting some dogwoods, spruces, and soft mast trees on those grounds.

The areas in the dakotas that have standing winter cover like cedar, dogwood, spruce, cattail, and russian olive are full of birds in the winter.
 
I fish channel cats in Monticello and the meat is white and delicious. The flatheads I catch in SW MN are inedible. The flesh smells like the gunky mud on the river banks. Putrid. Something needs to be done about the water in SW MN and it not hunters against farmers. It may be those fouling the water against anybody downstream.
 
What's crazy about this whole thing is that it all started at the pheasant summit. It quickly devolved into a land rights battle between farmers and the pheasant/gov't coalition. The gigantic missed opportunity here is they completely ignored "quality of habitat" on existing WMAs. I drive all over SW MN and see lots of WMAs where signs were put up and everyone walked away patting themselves on the back. Now it's all low quality grass (no legumes) that lays over in the winter and there isn't much diversity to provide cover in winter or good bugging ground in the spring. A lot of good could have been done by planting some dogwoods, spruces, and soft mast trees on those grounds.

The areas in the dakotas that have standing winter cover like cedar, dogwood, spruce, cattail, and russian olive are full of birds in the winter.

I have seen the same thing in Ottertail county and I believe Art has the same observations by him. After working with the NRCS on my property I've come to the conclusions that it is all about reporting enrolled acres instead of quality acres. If they actually measured acres that met minimum quality standards the acres would be less. Once again the perception is all these acres are enrolled but many do little for the wildlife.
 
Stuart,

Next time you see someone tiling into a swamp or a marsh you let me know and get me an address and I will get the NRCS, DNR, and Army Corps of Engineers on the phone. Perhaps they were just going through with non-perforated to get to the other side. Farmers just cant go out and tile whatever they want when they want. First thing you have to do is have a wetland determination done before you can any tiling. Tiling through any type of swamp or wetland is a huge NO!

Try to sneak it in on a Friday night or weekend. Well, that doesnt work either since FSA offices can see all of your tile lines with satellite imagery. I know of two gentlemen who tried this very thing and they were quickly shown the exit from the farm program(free subsidy money) and then the DNR made them rip out what they had done. Too often non-farmers make it sound like we can do whatever we want and face no repercussions. It just simply isnt true at all.

And I often wonder just how many potato fields from the Twin Cities up 10 and 94 to St. Cloud got paved over to put up suburbia. People sure love those dollar fries when they go to McDonalds though.
 
Global warming/climate change is debatable. Water quality and the causes of high nutrient levels in southern MN isn't. Whether its too late to do something or not may also be debatable, but it sure would be nice if we learned from our mistakes. Every time I see a marsh/swamp getting tiled I cringe. Those areas serve the purpose they were intended to serve...filtration of excess nutrients/sediment. With all the jackpine going into spud fields up north, its pretty clear what's going to happen if we don't do something. I suppose when all the lakes and rivers in central and NC MN are also unswimmable/unfishable maybe folks will say "we should do something"

Stu-I hate to see those wetlands tiled, also. And I see miles of tile going into Morrison and Stearns county. We are losing a lot of habitat.

Still I can see the farmers side of the issue on the buffers, also. I work with them every day.
 
Top